Separator for storage batteries



April 16, 1940. E. LONGAKER SEPARATOR FOR STORAGE BATTERIES Filed March 14, 1958 Patented Apr. 15, 194@ I' l i 2,197,367

turen STATES .Arai I carrie@ l 2,197,367 A SEPARA'10B. FOR STORAGE BATTERIES `Edgar Longaker, Collegeville, Pa., assigner to The ElectricStorage Battery Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of New Jersey A Application March 14, 1938, Serial No'. 195,674

'7 Claims.

Objects of the present inventionare to provide for the convenient assembly of wood sheets or veneers, either wet or dry, in and through the' slots of the bands or strips of insulating-material with which they are associated, and to mini-y mize splitting or danger of splitting ofthe wood sheet or veneer during the operation; `and* second, to improve the construction and operations of the bands orv slotted strips or dowels, as they are sometimes called in the art, oi .insulating or hard rubber materialiin such a way as to oppose deposition and accumulation of conducting material or mossing, as it is called in the art, upon the tie-rods passing through Aextensions of the strips, bands or dowels and at the edges which bound the notches in the wood sheets or veneers which notches engage with the dowels, strips or bands and by which the latter are positionedl on the veneer or wood sheet.

Other objects of theinvention will 'appear from the following description at the end of which the invention will be claimed.

Generally stated, the invention comprises a wood sheet or veneer having in'each of two of its opposite edges indentations or notches, and a dowel, band or strip of insulating. material having a slot of which one ofthe side walls is in two parts arranged in over and underlapping relation at its ends, and the ends of the slot having confronting teeth narrower than the strip, dowel or band and conformingto the'notches inthe sheet or veneer, the portions of the` strip adjacent the teeth covering the marginal portions of the notches. l

The invention further comprises the improvements to be presently described and finally claimed.

In the following description reference will be made to the accompanying drawing forming 40 part hereof and in which is illustrated an embodiment of the invention selected fromiother embodiments.

In the drawing, Figure 1 is a side View with parts in vertical cross-section of y a separator embodyingv features of the invention and illustrating in dotted and full lines a pair of storage battery plate groups or electrodes.

Figure 2 is an enlarged edge view of one of the bands, strips or dowels shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged view partly in section showing an inter-engaging notch and tooth.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 illustrating a modification.

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view showing a part .ofy the construction shown in Figure 1 and illustrating a tie bar; and

Figure 6 is a perspective view illustrating the construction of the strip, band or dowel'.``

Referring to the drawing, I indicatesa sheetA or veneer of wood having in each of the two of its opposite edges, the top and bottom edges, indentaticns or notches 2. It is an advantage to make these notches rectangularl as will, be

hereinafter explained or they may be of V-shape 10 as shown'at 2a in Figure 4. .The dowelA` strip or band3 of insulating material such as hard rubberfis provided intermediate of its endswith a slot which extends clear through it. One of the side walls is in two parts arrangedv in over.l

and underlapping relation `at their ends. As shown, part 4 is provided with an underlying tongue 44 and the part 5 is provided with an overhanging groove 55. At the ends of the slot in the dowel, strip or band 3 are provided con- 20 fronting teeth 6 narrower than the strip, dowel, or band and conforming in outline to the notches in the veneer. These overhanging portions l cover' the marginal parts of the notches 2. 8 is a rod-which passes through openings in the 25 center strip, dowel or band and it serves to hold the separators and plates 9 together. The center strip is tapered away from the rod' 6 and its edges are beveled as at I0..

Due tothe notches 2, the separator or veneer 30 l is locked in definite relation to the dowel 3. The dowel 3 in turn isfheld in position by the tie bar 8, which in turn is held in proper position as to the plate element. by passing through perforated feet or ears 2l] extending from the bottom of certain of the plates 9. The effect of such `arrangement is to hold the veneer in proper position' relative tothe plates.l

At their upper ends, thedowels, strips or bands 3, which are nearest the side edges of sheet or veneer` l, contact with the terminal straps 3U and 3 I, which are connected to the terminal posts 32 and 33. This contact aids in holding the battery plates 9 and the sheets or veneers I in proper relative position. y

To assemble the parts, the portion 4 of the dowel, strip or band is detached from the portion 5 as 'indicated `in Figure 2 and while the part 4 is bent upward, as indicated in Figure 2, the wood sheet orveneerl while being slightly o bent is mounted in the slotof the strip or dowel withits notches 2 in engagement with the teeth 6. The strip or dowel is made of insulating ma` terial of hard rubber or the .like which easily enaway from the rod 2 so that it does not lodgev or accumulate on the rod. If it did so accumulate or lodge it might produce short circuits. The function of the overhanging portion 1 is to cover the openings at the edges of the notch 2 so that mossing may not occur through thatspace.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates that modications may be made in details of construction and in matters of mere form without departing from the spirit of the invention which is not limited to such matters or otherwise than as the prior art and the appended claims may require.

I claim:

1. A separator for storage batteries comprising a wood veneer or sheet having in each of two of its opposite edges indentations or notches, and a strip, dowel or band of insulating material h'aving a longitudinal slot of dimensions adapted to receive the veneer and of which slot one of the v side walls is divided into two parts by a transverse cut, and the ends of the slot having confronting teeth conforming to the notches in the sheet or veneer.

2. A separator for storage batteries comprising a veneer or sheet and a dowel, strip or band having a longitudinal slot of dimensions adapted to receive the Veneer and of which slot one of the side walls is divided into two parts meeting ir1 termediate the ends of said side Wall.

3. A separator as described in claim 1 and in which the notches are generally rectangular.

4. A separator as described in claim l and in which the ends of the two-part Wall are disposed in underlying and overlapping relation.

5. A separator as described in claim l and in whichone of the parts of the wall has at its end an underlying tongue and of which the other part has at its end an overhanging groove.

6. A separator for storage batteries as described in claim l and in which the teeth are narrower than the strip to cover the union of the teeth with the side Walls of the notch.

'7. For a storage battery separator, a strip or band ofilexible insulating material resistant to storage battery electrolyte, said strip or band being slottedlongitudinally intermediate its ends to interlock in normal position but to be disenf 30. 

